title: Human NK cell subset functions are differentially affected by adipokines.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Obesity is a risk factor for various types of infectious diseases and cancer. The increase in adipose tissue causes alterations in both adipogenesis and the production of adipocyte-secreted proteins (adipokines). Since natural killer (NK) cells are the host's primary defense against virus-infected and tumor cells, we investigated how adipocyte-conditioned medium (ACM) affects functions of two distinct human NK cell subsets.
  
  
  METHODS
  Isolated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were cultured with various concentrations of human and murine ACM harvested on two different days during adipogenesis and analyzed by fluorescent-activated cell sorting (FACS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  FACS analyses showed that the expression of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), granzyme A (GzmA) and interferon (IFN)-γ in NK cells was regulated in a subset-specific manner. ACM treatment altered IFN-γ expression in CD56(dim) NK cells. The production of GzmA in CD56(bright) NK cells was differentially affected by the distinct adipokine compositions harvested at different states of adipogenesis. Comparison of the treatment with either human or murine ACM revealed that adipokine-induced effects on NK cell expression of the leptin receptor (Ob-R), TRAIL and IFN-γ were species-specific.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Considering the growing prevalence of obesity and the various disorders related to it, the present study provides further insights into the roles human NK cell subsets play in the obesity-associated state of chronic low-grade inflammation.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Functional and Applied Anatomy, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany ; Department of General-, Visceral-, Vascular and Thoracic Surgery, Charité, University Medicine Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Lena
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huebner
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Engeli
authors.forename: Christiane D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Wrann
authors.forename: Lilia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Goudeva
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Laue
authors.forename: Heike
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kielstein
mesh_terms: D041721:3T3-L1 Cells; D054392:Adipokines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D053804:Granzymes / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000187:drug effects*; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009765:Obesity / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D013045:Species Specificity; D053221:TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D054392:Adipokines; D003470:Culture Media; D053221:TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand; C505653:TNFSF10 protein, human; D007371:Interferon-gamma; D053804:Granzymes